Cone labeling, separating and restacking apparatus

ABSTRACT

An automatic cone labeling, separating and restacking apparatus comprising a magazine, loading means for placing a stalk of cones from the magazine into the labeling and separating apparatus, apparatus for placing a label into the larger end of a cone, separating apparatus for separating the labeled cone from the stalk of cones by creating a closed annular space between the labeled cone and the next cone and placing a compressible fluid under pressure within the closed annular space so that the labeled cone is moved to a receiving means, and control means to continue the operation until all cones in the stalk of cones have been labeled, separated, and restacked on the receiving means.

This is a division of application Ser. No. 497,554, filed Aug. 15, 1974, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,981,407.

This invention relates to cone handling apparatus, and is more particularly concerned with an automatic apparatus for placing a label within a cone, separating each cone from a stalk of cones, and restacking the cones.

In the textile industry, yarn or thread is usually wound on a cone. The yarn or thread manufacturer buys large quantities of cones and winds the yarn or thread on the cones. For shipping, the cones are nested together in stalks of cones; and, in the course of shipping the cones become pressed so firmly together that they are quite difficult to separate.

In the past, the yarn or thread manufacturer has employed people to separate the cones manually, which has often been extremely difficult due to the tight fit of the nested cones. After the cones are separated, the cones have been individually labeled by a person's manually peeling a label from its backing sheet, and placing the label inside the larger end of the cones. The entire process is both difficult and time consuming, and can be quite expensive in view of the large number of cones used by any one thread or yarn manufacturer.

The present invention overcomes the above-mentioned and other difficulties with the prior method of separating and labeling cones by providing automatic apparatus for receiving a stalk of cones from a supply of cones, stripping a label from its backing sheet and placing the label within the larger end of a cone, then separating the labeled cone from the stalk of cones and propelling the labeled cone to a receiving means where the label is pressed into place. The process is repeated until all cones in one stalk of cones have been labeled, separated and restacked whereupon another stalk of cones is fed to the device and the process is repeated. The separating apparatus includes means for creating an enclosed space between two contiguous nested cones and pressurizing the enclosed space with a compressible fluid to cause the contiguous cones to separate.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from consideration of the following specification when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, partially broken away, of one form of apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the magazine for receiving a plurality of stalks of cones, and illustrating the loading ram in conjunction therewith;

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 taken substantially along the line 3--3 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 4--4 in FIG. 1, portions thereof being omitted for clarity;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view showing the labeling apparatus in relation with the separating apparatus;

FIGS. 6A--6I are schematic illustrations showing the sequence of operations of the cone labeling, separating and stacking;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a plurality of cones and showing the separating apparatus;

FIGS. 8A--8C are schematic illustrations showing the sequence of operations for the label dispensing apparatus;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the fluid control circuits for apparatus according to the present invention; and

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the electrical control circuit for apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings and to that embodiment of the invention here chosen by way of illustration, it will be seen in FIG. 1 that the embodiment illustrated includes a substantially rectangular housing 20 having a magazine 21 mounted on the upper surface of the housing 20. The magazine 21 has an input zone 22 and a discharge zone 24. The discharge zone 24 is adjacent to the input slot 25 of the cone labeling and separating apparatus as will be discussed more fully hereinafter. The housing 20 also includes a discharge area 26 which is sufficiently large for receipt of a container into which the labeled, separated, and restacked cones can be discharged.

The end 28 of the housing 20 defines a compartment 29 for various control components of the apparatus that will be discussed later, and including a vacuum pump 30 and its motor 31. The upper surface of the end 28 of the housing 20 supports the label feed mechanism generally designated at 32.

Looking now at the magazine 21 in more detail as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the magazine 21 includes a pair of upstanding side members 34 and 35 fixed to the upper surface of the housing 20. The side members 34 and 35 are parallel to each other and are spaced apart a distance sufficient to receive a stalk of cones therebetween.

A plurality of support rods 36 extend between the side members 34 and 35, and the support rods 36 carry a pair of guide members including an outer guide member 38 and an inner guide member 39. The guide members 38 and 39 are spaced apart and are substantially parallel to each other throughout the greater part of their length. At the input 22 of the magazine 21, the outer guide member 38 diverges from the inner guide member 39 to provide for easier insertion of a stalk of cones.

Behind the input 22, the guide members are substantially parallel and spaced apart a distance to receive a stalk of cones, allowing sufficient space for a stalk of cones to roll unhindered between the two guide members 38 and 39. The shape of the guide members 38 and 39 is here shown as including a sloped section 40 beginning at the input 22 and terminating in a hairpin bend 41. The hairpin bend 41 connects the sloped section 40 with a final section 42 that terminates in the discharge 24. It will be understood that the particular shape of the guide members 38 and 39 is largely a matter of choice, the object being to provide a sufficiently long path to store a supply of stalks of cones, and the path can take the shape here illustrated or the path can be virtually any other shape desired.

The discharge 24 is disposed above the upper surface 44a of the loader ram 44 when the loader ram 44 is in its normal position as shown in FIG. 2. The discharge of stalks of cones from the discharge 24 is in a nearly vertical direction so that stalks of cones will be directed down, to the upper surface 44a of the ram 44, and the lowermost end 43 of the inner guide member 39 is bent as a stop for the stalks of cones as the stalks of cones roll down the final section 42. Due to the arrangement, one stalk of cones will be resting on the surface 44a while another stalk of cones will be resting on the surface 45. A third stalk of cones will be within the discharge 24 and resting on the stalk of cones that is on the surface 44a.

Thus, when the loader ram 44 moves forward to load the stalk of cones that is on the surface 45, the stalk of cones on the surface 44a can move to allow the stalk of cones within the discharge 24 to fall, thereby placing two stalks of cones on the surface 44a. Then, when the loader ram 44 retracts, or moves back to its normal position, the rearmost stalk of cones on the surface 44a will engage the surface 47 and the forward stalk of cones will fall from the surface 44a to the surface 45, to be in place for the next loading sequence.

Attention is next directed to FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings for an understanding of the construction of the apparatus. In the following description of the illustrated embodiment of the invention it should be understood that compressed air is used for actuation of the various operating cylinders. Those skilled in the art will realize that other fluids can be used with the appropriate engineering changes, which will be well within the ability of one skilled in the art.

In FIG. 4 of the drawings, the loader ram 44 is shown, but the magazine 21 is removed for clarity. The ram 44 is carried by a pair of shafts 50 extending perpendicularly from the ram 44, each of the shafts 50 being slidably received through a pair of bearings 51. Substantially, midway between the shafts 50 and parallel thereto, an air actuated cylinder, hereinafter referred to as the loader cylinder 52, is mounted. The loader cylinder 52 is fixed to the frame member 54 which carries the forward bearings 51, and the rod 55 of the loader cylinder 52 is fixed to the loader ram 44.

It will thus be seen that when the rod 55 is projected from the loader cylinder 52, the loader ram 44 will move forward, as previously mentioned, over the surface 45. Though much of the frame of the apparatus is omitted for clarity of illustration, it should be understood that the bearings 51 and the loader cylinder 52 are fixed relative to the frame of the apparatus, while the loader ram 44 along with the shafts 50 are moved with respect to the frame. When the rod 55 of the loader cylinder is fully projected, the structural member 56 of the loader ram 44 will engage the actuator of an electrical limit switch designated at LS4. The purpose of the switch LS4 will be discussed later.

When a stalk of cones is urged off the surface 45 by movement of the loader ram 44, the cones are deposited in a tray 58. The tray 58 is pivotally carried by a pair of hinges 59 and 60, and is held in any given position by an air actuated cylinder hereinafter referred to as the dump cylinder 61 shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings.

The tray 58 is a V-shaped member when in the "up" position as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and the tray 58 opens upwardly to receive a stalk of cones. Since the tray 58 is held in its up position by the dump cylinder 61, when the rod 62 of the dump cylinder is retracted, the tray 58 will pivot about the hinges 59 and 60 and cause any cones therein to fall from the tray 58.

It will be noted that the hinges 59 and 60 which carry the tray 58 are mounted on a carriage generally designated at 64. The carriage 64 rides on a pair of traverse rods 65 and 66 by means of bearings 68 on one end of the carriage and bearings 69 on the opposite end of the carriage. The carriage 64 is moved along the traverse rods 65 and 66 by means of a hydraulically actuated cylinder, hereinafter referred to as the traverse cylinder 70, fixed to the frame of the apparatus and having a rod 71 which is connected to a protruding finger 72. The finger 72 is attached to the carriage 64 so that, as the rod 71 is projected or retracted, the carriage 64 and all its appurtenances will be moved along the traverse rods 65 and 66.

A separator nozzle 74 is carried by a supply pipe 75, the supply pipe 75 and the nozzle 74 being stationary relative to the frame of the apparatus. The nozzle 74 is parallel to the tray 58 and is so located that, when a stalk of cones is within the tray 58 with its axis parallel to the tray 58, the nozzle 74 will be co-axially aligned with the axis of the stalk of cones. Thus, with a stalk of cones in the tray 58, when the tray 58 moves towards the nozzle 74, the nozzle 74 will pass through the stalk of cones. This will be discussed more fully hereinafter.

Adjacent to the nozzle 74 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings there is a cone nose receiver 76. It should be understood that the nose of the cone here referred to is the smaller end. The cone nose receiver 76 has a central opening through which the supply pipe 75 passes; and, as the carriage 64 moves along the traverse rods 65 and 66, the cone nose receiver 76 moves along the supply pipe 75.

At the opposite end of the tray 58, and axially aligned with the cone nose receiver 76, there is a cone base receiver 78. The cone base receiver 78 is carried on the rod 79 of an air operated cylinder hereinafter referred to as the pusher cylinder 80. As best shown in FIG. 4, the pusher cylinder 80 is fixed to a plate 81, the plate 81 being fixed to the carriage 64 for movement with the carriage 64.

The cone base receiver 78 is surrounded by a stripper 82, the stripper 82 being in the form of a plate having a hole 84 therein through which the cone base receiver 78 passes. The stripper 82 is carried by the rod 85 of an air actuated cylinder hereinafter referred to as the stripper cylinder 86; therefore, when the rod 85 of the stripper cylinder 86 is projected, the stripper 82 will move along the cone base receiver 78 to strip cones therefrom. When the stripper 82 is in its outermost position, the stripper 82 will engage the operating arm of a limit switch designated at LS2 which is mounted on the carriage 64.

To operate the stripper cylinder 86, there is a valve V1 mounted on the plate 81 with an operating plunger 88. A fixed bracket 89 threadedly receives a screw 90, and the screw 90 is aligned to engage the operating plunger 88 when the carriage 64 moves the valve V1 towards the bracket 89, so that the screw 90 constitutes a valve operating means.

There is a switch designated as LS6 fixed to the bracket 91 which mounts the dump cylinder 61. A screw 92 is threadedly received by a plate 94 and is in position to engage the operating plunger LS6-A of the switch LS6. The switch LS6 is a single-pole-single-throw switch that is opened by depression of the plunger LS6-A, and the switch is closed by depression of the plunger LS6-B which is on the opposite side of the switch LS6.

To depress the plunger LS6-B, there is a screw 95 similar to the screw 92 but located within the compartment 29 so that the switch LS6 will contact the screw 95 when the carriage 64 is moved to the opposite side of the housing 20. Also, there is a switch LS5 located within the compartment 29 that will be engaged by the carriage 64 at the end of its travel towards the switch LS5.

Attention is now directed primarily to FIG. 5 of the drawings which shows the mechanical arrangement of the labeling apparatus in the embodiment of the invention here chosen by way of illustration of the invention.

It should first be noted that the tray 58 is shown with cones resting within the tray 58, located to receive a label. The sucker 130 comprises a pipe that is movable in an arc between a first position wherein the sucker 130 receives a label to be applied and a second position in which the sucker 130 places a label into a cone. The sucker 130 is carried by a labeler arm 125 for the desired movement, and the labeler arm 125 is pivoted at 127 to allow the oscillating motion.

Movement of the labeler arm 125 is caused by a labeler cylinder 124 having a cylinder rod 122 slidable within the cylinder 124 and pivotally fixed to the arm 125 by means of a screw 123. The labeler cylinder 124 is pivotally carried at its upper end 117 so that it, too, can follow the necessary arcuate path.

The apparatus thus far described is contained within the housing 23 which is shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, and one wall of the housing 23 is also shown in FIG. 5 where it will be seen that the arm 125 extends beyond the housing 23.

Fixed to the rearmost end of the arm 125 is a finger 131, the finger 131 being in close proximity to the operating plunger 132 of a valve 134. From this arrangement it will be seen that when the rod 122 is projected from the cylinder 124 to cause the labeler arm 125 to move down to its label placing position, the finger 131 will move towards the operating plunger 132 to depress the plunger 132 and open the valve 134. The function of the valve 134 will be better understood in consideration of the fluid circuits to be discussed hereinafter.

The above discussed apparatus will place a label that is on the sucker 130 into a cone that is within the tray 58. The next arrangement to be described is the apparatus to dispense a label and place a label on the sucker 130.

Prior to the labeling movement of the labeler arm 125, the shoe cylinder 126 projects its rod 128. The shoe cylinder rod 128 is connected to a bracket 250 that is slidably mounted in an upper groove 251 and a lower groove 252 of a slide plate 254. A return paper guide roll 255 is rotatably mounted on the bracket 250, extending perpendicularly to the slide plate 254.

Ahead of the bracket 250, and separate therefrom, there is a shoe plate 256 which is also slidable along the slide plate 254. The shoe plate 256 has a shoe 258 fixed thereto and movable therewith.

The shoe 258 comprises a substantially wedge-shaped member 259 having a label peeling plate 260 supported adjacent thereto and parallel to the upper, sloped surface. The arrangement is such that a backing paper having pressure-sensitive labels thereon is passed across the upper surface of the label-peeling plate 260, and the backing paper returns between the plate 260 and the wedge 259. The action of the paper's passing across the edge of the plate 260 causes a label to be peeled from the backing paper.

The shoe 258 includes a U-shaped member 261 fixed to the wedge 259 to provide a bridge; and, the bridge, or member, 261 pivotally supports a feed-dog 262 that is biased to rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 5 to urge the point 264 against the backing paper for the labels.

Now, it will be understood that, when the bracket 250 is moved by projection of the rod 128, the shoe plate 256 and the attached shoe 258 will also be moved by abutment with the bracket 250. A strip of labels will pass under the guide roller 265 and pass between the dog 262 and the plate 260. The dog will engage the rear edge of a label to position the label and cause the entire assembly to move towards the sucker 130.

When the shoe 258 reaches its forwardmost position, the bridge 261 will engage a limit switch LS10, at which time the shoe cylinder 126 will retract its rod 128; however, the shoe plate 256 is not connected to the bracket 250 so that the shoe 258 will not be moved.

After the bracket 250 has moved rearwardly, the rewind motor or other apparatus 239 will be activated to pull the backing paper over the roll 255 and thereby to pull the shoe 258 to the rear. This action will continue until the bridge 261 engages the limit switch LS11.

Looking now at FIGS. 8A--8C, the operation for dispensing a label will become more clear. FIG. 8A illustrates the position in which the shoe 258 is in its forward position, and it will be seen that the end label LB1 is in engagement with the sucker 130. At this point, the rewind mechanism 239 is energized so that the backing paper is pulled as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 8A. Thus, as the backing paper is pulled, the shoe 258 as illustrated by the plate 260 is moved away from the sucker 130, but leaving the label LB1 fixed to the sucker 130 held by a vacuum through the sucker 130.

As the motion continues, as shown in FIGS. 8B and 8C, the label LB1 is entirely stripped from the backing sheet and left on the sucker 130, and the next label LB2 is partially stripped from the backing sheet, ready for the next cycle. 

I claim:
 1. A cone labeling, separating and re-stacking apparatus comprising a magazine for storing a plurality of stalks of cones parallel to one another, said magazine having a sloped discharge area for gravity feed of stalks of cones from said magazine, a loader ram disposed adjacent to said discharge area for retaining said stalks of cones in said magazine, and means for causing reciprocal motion of said loader ram for moving a first stalk of cones and allowing a second stalk of cones to be released from said magazine, a tray for receiving said first stalk of cones, cone nose receiving means for receiving the nose end of said first stalk of cones in said tray means, said cone nose receiving means being axially aligned with said stalk of cones in said tray means, cone base receiving means axially aligned with said cone nose receiving means, labeling means for placing a label into the cone base end of said first stalk of cones, and cone separating means for separating the cone at the cone base end of said stalk of cones and moving said cone to said cone base receiving means, said cone separating means including a nozzle having a fluid passageway therein for admitting fluid under pressure between contiguous cone noses, and traverse means for moving said tray means in a direction parallel to the axis of said stalk of cones on said tray, said traverse means including index means for disposing said fluid passageway of said nozzle between successive contiguous cones of said stalk of cones.
 2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, said index means comprising a light source on one side of said tray means, a light sensitive device on the opposite side of said tray means for receiving light from said light source, relay means operable by said light sensitive device for actuating said traverse means, said light source and said light sensitive device being so located that a stalk of cones on said tray means will prevent said light sensitive device from receiving light from said light source, the arrangement being such that said traverse means will cause movement of said tray means until said light source is blocked by a cone in said tray means.
 3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, and further including stripper means for stripping a re-stacked stalk of cones from said cone base receiving means, and tray dumping means for dumping said re-stacked stalk of cones from said tray means. 